1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a networked game tournament for a game such as blackjack.
2. Description of the Related Art
Blackjack, also known as twenty-one and pontoon in British English, is one of the most popular casino card games in the world. Much of blackjack's popularity is due to the mix of chance with elements of skill and decision making, and the publicity that surrounds the practice of card counting, a skill with which players can turn the odds of the game in their favor by making betting decisions based on the values of the cards known to remain in the deck. Blackjack's precursor was vingt-et-un (“twenty-one”), which originated in French casinos around 1700, and did not offer the 3:2 bonus for a two-card 21.
When blackjack was first introduced in the United States it was not very popular, so gambling houses tried offering various bonus payouts to get the players to the tables. One such bonus was a 10-to-1 payout if the player's hand consisted of the ace of spades and a black Jack (either the Jack of clubs or the Jack of spades). This hand was called a “blackjack” and the name stuck even though the bonus payout was soon abolished.
Blackjack hands are scored by their point total. The hand with the highest total wins as long as it does not exceed 21; a hand with a higher total than 21 is said to bust. Cards numbered two through ten are worth their face value, and face cards (jack, queen, king) are also worth ten. An ace's value is eleven unless this would cause the player to bust, in which case it is worth one. A hand in which an ace's value is counted as eleven is called a soft hand, because it cannot be busted if the player draws another card.
The goal of each player is to beat the dealer by having the higher, unbusted hand. Note that if the player busts he loses, even if the dealer also busts. If both the player and the dealer have the same point value, it is called a “push,” and neither player nor dealer wins the hand. Each player has an independent game with the dealer, so it is possible for the dealer to lose to one player, but still beat the other players in the same round.
The minimum bet is printed on a sign on the table and varies from casino to casino, and even table to table. The most common minimum in the U.S. is $5. After initial bets are placed, the dealer deals the cards, either from one or two hand-held decks of cards, known as a “pitch” game, or more commonly from a shoe containing four or more decks. The dealer gives two cards to each player, including himself. One of the dealer's two cards is face-up so all the players can see it, and the other is face down. (The face-down card is known as the “hole card”. In European blackjack, the hole card is not actually dealt until the players all play their hands.) The cards are dealt face up from a shoe, or face down if it is a pitch game.
A two-card hand of 21 (an ace plus a ten-value card) is called a “blackjack” or a “natural” and is an automatic winner. A player with a natural is usually paid 3:2 on his bet, although in 2003 some casinos started paying only 6:5 on blackjacks, a move decried by longtime blackjack players.
The play goes as follows: If the dealer has blackjack and the player does not, the player automatically loses. If the player has blackjack and the dealer does not, the player automatically wins. If both the player and dealer have blackjack then it is a push. If neither side has blackjack, then each player plays out his hand, one at a time. When all the players have finished the dealer plays his hand.
The player's options for playing his or her hand are: Hit: Take another card. Stand: Take no more cards. Double down: Double the wager, take exactly one more card, and then stand. Split: Double the wager and have each card be the first card in a new hand. This option is available only when both cards have the same value. Surrender: Forfeit half the bet and give up the hand. Surrender was common during the early- and mid-20th century, but is no longer offered at most casinos.
The player's turn is over after deciding to stand, doubling down to take a single card, or busting. If the player busts, he or she loses the bet even if the dealer goes on to bust as well.
After all the players have finished making their decisions, the dealer then reveals his or her hidden hole card and plays the hand. House rules say that the dealer must hit until he or she has at least 17, regardless of what the players have. In most casinos a dealer must also hit a soft 17 (such as an ace and a 6). Writing on the felt of the table will indicate whether or not the house hits or stands on a soft 17. If the dealer busts then all remaining players win. Bets are normally paid out at the odds of 1:1.
Some common rules variations include: one card split aces: one card is dealt on each ace, player's turn is over. Early surrender: player has the option to surrender before dealer checks for Blackjack. Late surrender: player has the option to surrender after dealer checks for Blackjack. Double-down restrictions: double-down allowed only on certain combinations. Dealer hits a soft seventeen (ace-six, which can play as seven or seventeen) European No-Hole-Card Rule: the dealer receives only one card, dealt face-up, and does not a second card (and thus does not check for blackjack) until players have acted. This means players lose not only their original bet, but also any additional money invested from splitting and doubling down. There are more than a few blackjack variations which can be found in the casinos, each has its own set of rules, strategies and odds. It is advised to take a look at the rules of the specific variation before playing.
A tournament is a competition involving a relatively large number of competitors, all participating in a single sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses:                1. One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentrated into a relatively short time interval. Some game clubs focus on preparing members for such tournaments. Chess clubs, for instance, frequently employ similar ranking systems, chess clocks, and etiquette to those used in chess tournaments.        2. A competition involving multiple matches, each involving a subset of the competitors, with the overall tournament winner determined based on the combined results of these individual matches. These are common in those sports and games where each match must involve a small number of competitors: often precisely two, as in most team sports, racket sports and combat sports, many card games and board games, and many forms of competitive debating. Such tournaments allow large numbers to compete against each other in spite of the restriction on numbers in a single match.        
These two senses are distinct. All golf tournaments meet the first definition, but while matchplay tournaments meet the second, strokeplay tournaments do not, since there are no distinct matches within the tournament. In contrast, football (soccer) leagues like the FA Premier League are tournaments in the second sense, but not the first, having matches spread across many stadiums over a period of up to a year. Many tournaments meet both definitions; for example, the Wimbledon tennis championship.
In one card game, contract bridge, a “tournament” is a tournament in the first sense above, composed of multiple “events,” which are tournaments in the second sense. Some events may be single-elimination, double-elimination, or Swiss style. However, “Pair events” are the most widespread. In these events, an identical deal (or board) is played in multiple rubbers. The North-South (NS) pair in one such rubber is measured not against the East-West (EW) pair in that same rubber, but rather against all the other NS pairs playing the same board in other rubbers.
Thus pairs are rewarded for playing the same cards better than others have played them. Several systems provide a predetermined schedule of fixtures based on the number of pairs and boards to be played, to ensure a good mix of opponents, and that no pair plays the same board twice. In duplicate bridge, a player normally plays with the same partner throughout an event. The two are known as a “pair”. There are two exceptions: on team events with five or six members swapping partners for portions of the event, and in individual tournaments, in which players change partners for each round. An individual event in duplicate bridge is one where each round a player is paired with a different partner.
Scoring is usually using matchpoint pairs scoring, but IMP pairs scoring can be used. There are various methods for assigning partners. In some methods, a given set of players always sit North, another set sit South, another set sit East, and a final set always sit West. This can be used to ensure that each pair consists of a relatively experienced or skilled player, and a relatively inexperienced player. Individual events are more complex to run, and require that the players get accustomed to new partners on a frequent basis. Also, the outcome depends more on luck than in other types of events, as a good player often cannot do much when paired with a bad player, especially if the deal is complex. For those reasons they are less popular and less common than pair or team events, but some players are very fond of them.
Today, many games can be played over some form of network, most commonly the Internet. The expansion of online gaming has reflected the overall expansion of the Internet. Online games can range from simple text based games to games incorporating complex graphics and virtual worlds populated by many players simultaneously. Many different styles of play are available online. Many online games have associated online communities, making online games a form of social activity beyond single player games.